April 29, 2005

Three Houston-area men are using a letter written by Pope Benedict XVI while he was a cardinal as the basis for a lawsuit against the Catholic Church.

In a report by KPRC-TV, Channel 2 on Tuesday, the attorney for the plaintiffs told a federal judge during a hearing that the pope in 2001 sought to cover up cases involving the sexual abuse of children by pedophile priests.

The plaintiffs, who claim they are victims of the church’s sex scandal, say that a letter written by then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as instructions to bishops from the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, is proof that he conspired to keep claims of sex abuse secret.

The men are suing the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston and Archbishop Joseph Fiorenza.

Their attorney, Daniel Shea, argued Tuesday before U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal that Pope Benedict XVI was among those who sought to cover up the child sex abuse scandal in the church.

“We believe, actually, that the current pope, when he was head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, was actively involved in that conspiracy,” Shea argued.